This invention relates to an unloading device for use with a truck, and more particularly to a highly flexible attachment for use with a truck having a lift mechanism, the attachment being particularly adapted for unloading coils from hard to approach positions.
Many devices exist for handling coils of wire that are in easily accessible positions; a device representative of the art is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 1,626,555 issued to E. H. Remde. Wire coils, however, are not always in accessible positions. For example, during shipment the coils are in gondola railroad cars where, besides being loaded with their axial openings perpendicular to the direction of the line of travel of an unloading truck, these coils have their axial openings blocked from direct access by the end walls of the railroad cars.
Presently, to unload these coils some form of mobile crane is used, the usual type having a rotating main boom with a built-in extendible boom. This type of crane is designed primarily to work from a stationary position with outriggers extended to the ground for stability. When transporting materials these cranes usually have poor maneuverability, speed and stability characteristics, and suffer the further disadvantage of being single purpose machines that must be parked when the unloading job is finished.